The Senate actually passed a continuing resolution bill to keep the government open on December 19 on a unanimous voice vote. The Republican-controlled House passed a similar measure the next day on the 20th, but the House version included $5b for Trump's vanity wall ("TRUMP" in big gold letters). It needed 60 votes to pass in the Senate and be sent along to the president for his signature.

They didn't have 60 votes, so Mitch refused to schedule a vote.

And of course on January 3 the House changed to Democratic control, so the House bill was now DOA. The Democratic House has sent six bills to Mitch for a vote -- identical to the one he passed December 19 -- and he refuses to put them on the calendar. Trump has said he would not sign a bill that didn't include his new hotel wall, and Mitch is unwilling to call his bluff and/or override his veto.

Ella Nilsen/Vox wrote:

McConnell is saying he won’t bring anything to the floor until he knows Trump will sign it. Senate Democrats are increasingly criticizing this, essentially asking McConnell to call Trump’s bluff.

The funding bills they want to vote on are nearly identical to the ones the Senate passed near unanimously before the holidays. In theory, Congress could override the president’s veto on a spending bill. That’s exactly what Cardin was asking for on Thursday.

“That’s been passed near unanimously by this body,” Cardin said, referring to the spending bills. “The last time I checked the Constitution, that’s enough for a veto override.”

But it’s clear McConnell doesn’t plan to take the drastic step of clashing so publicly with the president. Even though there are some cracks within his party, with moderate Republicans urging him to take action, McConnell is ultimately the one who decides.

That proposal is likely to anger Trump’s far-right base, however. Conservative author Ann Coulter ― whom Trump has taken policy cues from in the past ― tweeted that Trump’s offer was “100 miles of border wall in exchange for amnestying millions of illegals.”

“So if we grant citizenship to a BILLION foreigners, maybe we can finally get a full border wall,” she said.

Keep it up, Annie. Your irrelevance is important now, and needs to be recognized by this president and his 3 advisors.